


But She's a Forest Fire

by Aladin_Sane



Category: Baby Driver (2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Always a Different Sex, Baby is a girl, That's it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-13
Updated: 2017-07-17
Packaged: 2018-12-01 13:20:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11487222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aladin_Sane/pseuds/Aladin_Sane
Summary: Character Study of Baby if he was a girl the entire time





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've decided that girl Baby should be played by Daisy Ridley
> 
> Title is from Liability by Lorde.
> 
> Also, I keep imagining Griff and Buddy hiding from the cops in a bathroom and Griff does the whole "Baby Changing Station? Baby Hanging Station" thing and Buddy just shoots him in the foot, idk what you wanna do with that.

It wasn't that Darling didn't think girls could rob banks (obviously), it was just that she was yet to meet another. Seeing the girl, roughly her age, sitting away from the table in Doc's meeting room was honestly a bit of a surprise. 

"Darling, sorry to hear about Buddy. Glad you could make it though. Where is he again?" Doc asked, not unfriendly but not like he really cared.

"Damage control back in New York." Darling didn't take her eyes off of the girl. "Who's this?" 

The girl didn't even move her head to acknowledge that Darling had walked in. With her earbuds and sunglasses, she looked completely removed from the rest of the room. Half of her hair was tied into a knot at the top of her head, what couldn't fit hung loosely around her cheeks. Jagged scars littered her face, especially around the edges of her sunglasses, making her look tougher than her puffy grey jacket implied. 

"This is Baby. You haven't worked a job in a job in awhile, she's my new driver. Haven't done a job without her since we met," Doc explained.

"She's good?"

"You think I'd settle for less than the best?" 

Baby moved to the end of the table when Doc began explaining the plane. She stared ahead blindly, as if miles away from her own body. Darling watched her fingers play out piano keys onto the table, nimble and expert. Her nails were cut short, painted red but chipped. When she caught Darling looking, neither of them turned away. Instead, she just shifted in her chair and slid her hand down to hit a note out of her immediate reach. Darling liked her. 

"Hey, what are you listening to?" Darling asked as they walked to the car. She liked that Baby had a bounce to her step, that she walked like she was keeping a beat. 

"Oh. Music?" 

Darling laughed. Baby thought her voice sounded like church bells. "Well, yeah, of course."

Baby's lips twitched, just briefly. Darling caught her mistake and covered quickly. She couldn't ruin this that quickly, could she? It'd be cool to have a coworker she could bond with without Buddy getting all protective for once. "I don't mean that. I guess you could be listening to anything. Audio tutorials for building model planes or something. Or maybe a 'Learn Spanish in 30 Days' tape series."

That earned her a smile. It was barley a curl of Baby's lips, but it was enough. 

"You two better not get distracted talking about makeup or whatever," one of the guys snapped. His name was something kinda lame, like Manic or Madness or something. Darling looked him up and down. He was big, but she could probably take him. Nobody was too big for a bullet, if push came to shove. 

"So, Baby, how long've you been working?" Darling asked, decidedly ignoring their other two coworkers. 

Baby looked up while she got in the car, as if she was counting. "7 years. 2 to go. No, 3." 

"Already counting down for retirement?" Darling laughed again, and Baby decided that she wanted to always be listening to Darling's laugh. 

Darling laughed 3 more times on the way to the bank, once as she was getting out. Baby watched her walk in, watched the way the two men stared her down from behind. It almost made her want to hit them with the car. 

She looked at her chipped fingernail polish while she waited for the others. This was a quick job, another armored truck robbery. Which meant no time for dancing. Baby wasn't sure how she felt about the nail polish. Doc had set her up on a date, said something about wanting her to get out of the house once in a while. He strongly encouraged she "dolled herself up" and she'd given it her best shot. The lipstick had been too thick on her lips, made her teeth feel sticky. The blush made her feel like a clown, the mascara made her eyes stick together. But she didn't know how to feel about the nail polish. It didn't bother her, and she liked the way Darling's nails looked. Baby stretched out her fingers, wondered how pale pink nails would look against the leather of the steering wheel. 

The sound of the alarm snapped her back into action. Darling swung into the passenger seat beside her, the two men just a beat behind. Baby stared at her in confusion. Darling had been on beat. Nobody else was ever on beat. 

"Baby, go!" Darling said, another laugh stuck in her throat by the fear of messing up the job. The nerves didn't sound good on her. 

So Baby drove. And if she did a few extra tricks just to show off to Darling, that was her business. 

Darling sat next to her while Doc counted the money. Nobody ever did that. She chewed her gum loud in Baby's ear, but she didn't mind. Their shoulders pressed together, but Baby didn't move. 

"So, Baby, what do you do when you're not driving getaway cars?" she asked, teasing. 

Baby wasn't sure if Darling was just making fun of her. "I just drive. And listen to music."

"Who's your favorite?"

Darling watched her blink behind her sunglasses, tilt her head like she was thinking. Favorite? Baby never picked a favorite before. She thought throw her songs, which ones made Joe dance, which ones made her skin tingle. The best ones were the songs that made her feel like she was curling her hand around the wheel and yanking the e-brake. 

"Queen," she decided. 

"Oh, my Buddy just loves Queen! I bet you two would get along."

"He's doing damage control back in New York?" 

"Yeah. Something about his old boss getting hot on his trail. He had to go take care of him."

"Take care of him?" Baby thought about how she took care of Joe. She tried to imagine Buddy spreading peanut butter to the edges of the bread. Looking at Darling, she tried to imagine what Buddy would be like. Would he have nice eyes? Would he smile at Darling every time he saw her? 

"You know. Take care of him." Darling dragged her finger across her neck, let her head fall to the side and her tongue droop out of her mouth. "I'm just doing this because sitting around at home is so boring, ya know?"

That was not how Baby took care of Joe. "No."

"You live alone?"

"No."

"You got a partner you live with?"

Baby thought about square dancing. "Partner?" she asked. In her head blasted the twanging voice of a man barking out square dancing instructions. "Swing your partner round and round..."

"Yeah, like a boyfriend or girlfriend?"

"Oh." Baby thought about the boy that Doc had sent to pick her up for their date. His black hair was curly and he had a nice smile, crooked teeth that made him look kind. She looked at her fingernails again, remembering how he'd kissed her knuckles before dropping her off. Joe would've liked him. Doc liked him. Baby didn't like the way his eyes flashed with excitement when he talked about killing someone when a job went bad. "No."

"You got a girlfriend or a boyfriend?" Darling asked, smiling patiently. 

Baby liked her lips nervously, thinking of the waitress at Bo's Diner who sat across from her and sang like a songbird when business was slow. "No. Is Buddy your boyfriend or girlfriend?"

Darling laughed again, put her hand on Baby's shoulder. It felt warm and nice. It felt like they were old friends, catching up over brunch after a few weeks apart. "He's my husband. We've gotten married twice now."

"What was wrong with the first wedding?" 

Darling's tuck stuck out between her white shiny teeth, her cheeks dimpled. "Well, nothing. We just had a free weekend and a bunch of cash to blow through." 

Baby nodded, even though she didn't really understand. Joe always told her to make friends, and she always told him that she just never met anybody she wanted to be friends with. Now that the opportunity had practically dropped in her lap, she didn't know what to do. Her mind cycled through all the ways she watched people become friends in movies. People shared information, right? Told each other fun facts? She wracked her brain trying to think of one. 

"There isn't a word for Darling in sign language," she blurted out. 

"No?"

"Not really. Sometimes people do this -" Baby placed her hand, fingers spread, against the center of her chest. "But that's just a term of endearment."

"So, it isn't a direct translation?" Darling asked, imitating the action. 

Baby nodded. 

"Do you know any other sign language?"

"Yeah. Lots." 

Darling giggled. "Well, teach me something!"

"Like what?" 

"How do I say 'I love you' to Buddy?"

Baby lifted her hand, middle and ring finger curved to her palm and the rest of them stretched out. "That's 'I love you' and this -" She hooked her two pointer fingers together and pulled slightly. "Is 'Buddy'." 

Darling copied the moves and smiled to herself. "So, you're more than just music and driving." 

"Not by much." It didn't sound as smooth out loud as it did in Baby's head. 

Doc called them back over to take their holdalls of money. In the elevator, Darling babbled to Baby about what she was gonna do with the money. It sounded glamorous, getting her nails done, those earrings she'd been looking at for days now in the jeweler's window, mountains of cocaine. She asked Baby what she was going to do with her share. 

"Buy myself a nice car," Baby said, looking directly at Doc. "And groceries." 

Darling followed her eyes to Doc, looked back at her and furrowed her brow. In the end, she decided not to say anything. "Well, if you're ever free, we could take a day out. Shop, hit the pool, whatever you'd want to do. Doc can put us in touch. Can't you, Doc?" 

"Baby's pretty busy," Doc responded coldly. 

With a frustrated twist of her lips, Darling huffed out a breath of air. Baby watched her dark purple lipstick stain just above her upper lip from the pout. She got out of the elevator, but slipped a business card into Baby's pocket as she left. 

"You've got some nerve, making a comment like that," Doc said once it was just him and Baby alone in the elevator. 

"Like what?"

"You know what I mean."

"I just want a car. And groceries."

"Are you ungrateful? Would you have preferred I just killed you for stealing my car?"

"I didn't say that."

"You've got a fucking attitude problem tonight. Darling's rubbing off on you already." 

"Sorry, Doc." 

"It's alright." He popped his trunk and held out his hand for her holdall. 

She handed it over obediently, waited for her single stack of hundreds to press into her hand. It didn't come. When she realized Doc wasn't giving her any money tonight, she stuffed her hand back in her pocket. 

"How did it go with Eric last night?" 

"I didn't like him." 

"Did he do anything to you? Did he say or do anything that made you feel uncomfortable?" Doc studied her face, knowing that Baby would say "no" regardless of the truth. 

"No," she said, trying not to think about that flash in his eyes. 

"Want me to kill him?" 

Her eyes widened behind her sunglasses, Doc could tell by the movement of her eyebrows. 

"I'm kidding. Have a good night, Baby. I'll call you." 

Baby pulled another all-nighter after that job. She sat at her homemade recording studio, re-recording and editing the words Darling had said to her. "Counting down?" followed by the recording of Baby herself saying "2...3" and then "Baby, Go!" It was the first time Baby had ever put her own voice into a song, more than a whistle or a click. And then, just because Baby couldn't help herself, she snuck in the "How do I say I love you?" right at the very end. It was so quiet that she could barely hear it, but it was more than enough.


	2. Buddy

"Buddy, you'll love her," Darling said. Her feet were propped up on the dashboard, her arm out the window to feel the breeze from driving. 

"What about her has you so bubbly? I haven't heard you talk like this since we were looking at those puppies at the shelter," Buddy said with a laugh. 

"She's so charming, Buddy. Her name's Baby, ain't that cute? And she loves music, Queen specifically. Oh, Buddy, she drives like a tsunami." 

"So, she's good?" Buddy asked as he parked the car in Doc's garage. 

"She's the best!" Darling skipped into the elevator, swinging Buddy's hand in hers the whole way up. 

Inside of Doc's meeting room, there were two twin sisters already sitting side by side. Viper and Vulture, Buddy had worked with them before but not Darling. They both had that same body shape that made them look like daggers and black hair pulled in ponytails so tight they looked like they hurt. Across from them sat Baby, who stared blankly out the window as the sisters grilled her endlessly. 

"Where's Doc?" Buddy asked. 

"Last minute information came in," Viper answered (or was that Vulture?) She tore her piercing eyes off of Baby just long enough to stare disgustedly at Darling. 

"Is there a problem here?" Darling asked, pulling up a chair next to Baby. It was a clear message to the twins. Baby never responded to any taunts, refused to kill anybody, regardless of what happened. Darling, however, had no reservations against such a thing. And had proven it many (many) times. 

The twins turned towards each other, their conversation becoming hushed between the two of them. Buddy smiled as he joined Darling at the table. Something about knowing his girl was bloodthirsty enough to have a reputation made his heart squeeze with pride. 

"So, you're Baby?" he asked. 

Baby looked over, but didn't quite make eye contact. She settled back in her chair without saying anything, her gaze back out the window. Buddy looked between her blank face and Darling, who was smiling like a proud mom at her toddler's dance recital. 

"Wow, she really is charming," Buddy whispered. 

Darling hit him hard in the stomach. "Baby, this is Buddy. I told you about him, remember?" 

"He was doing damage control, you've been married twice because you had a free weekend and lots of cash to blow. Right?" she said. 

"Exactly! What have you been doing since our last job together?" Darling asked. 

"Uh." Baby tapped her fingertips on the counter while she thought. "I bought a new record." 

"What record?" 

"I accidentally scratched my 'Best of Miles Davis' and had to buy another. It doesn't have the same songs, but it's good."

Darling turned to Buddy proudly. "See? She likes Miles Davis. Charming." She noticed then that Baby's nails were painted maroon, the same color as Darling's shirt. 

Buddy watched how Darling chatted away, and how Baby listened to every word intently. Darling was going on and on about their latest vacation to Greece and how amazing the food had been. Buddy had been there and the conversation still bored him. But Baby acted like Darling was explaining all the secrets of the universe. 

Doc burst in the room, uncapping a whiteboard marker as he went. "Alright, good, you all know each other. So, here's what's gonna happen..." He launched into his explanation, but Buddy found himself distracted.

Baby was playing with the toy cars on the table, making them crash into each other. Darling grabbed a toy from further along the table and sent it towards Baby. It bounced against her wrist lightly and the two smiled at each other, Darling's bright and wide, and Baby's barely more than a curl of her lips. 

"Doc, I think there are one too many people here to fit in a car," Vulture pointed out, her gaze directed at Baby. "Remember when I used to drive? I never fucked up a job."

"Baby's the driver. And Darling's going to be helping me with a different project while you four are out. Any other questions?" 

Buddy looked at Darling. She looked back, but didn't offer an explanation. "A different project?" he asked. 

"Doc needs me to take out some guy. Don't worry about it." She planted a kiss on Buddy's cheek, and he let the conversation drop. How could he argue with that. 

"Alright, head out," Doc said, shuffling through the papers in front of him. 

Darling walked with the rest of the group to the car in the garage, holding Buddy's hand and dancing to herself the whole way. Baby smiled when the loud clash of cymbals played every time one of her feet hit the ground. 

"Alright, my love. Be safe on your job, get extra money for me," Darling cooed to Buddy, planting kisses along his jaw. 

"And you!" she continued, leaning against the car door and grabbing Baby's face in her hands. "Drive safe. Bring my Buddy home, yeah?" Baby nodded and Darling kissed her forehead, leaving a sticky red lip print. 

Buddy took the front seat during the ride and tried to block out the twins' conversation behind them. They were squawking to each other, their nasally voices droning on and on about everything wrong with Baby. Most likely, they assumed she couldn't hear because of her earbuds, but Buddy could see the way her hands tightened on the wheel. 

He didn't really understand what their problem was. Sure, Baby was different from everyone else. She didn't talk much, she always had her earbuds in and sunglasses on. It distanced her from whatever was going on around her, but it wasn't a bad thing. Buddy couldn't imagine being upset with her about it. 

They pulled up to the bank, but before he got out Baby grabbed his arm. The twins ignored her, slamming their car doors one after another. A twang of anxiety spread across Baby's face at their movements. 

"Okay, go," she said suddenly. 

Buddy got out when she said, and watched her relax a bit into her chair. Okay, so that was odd. But again, it didn't make Buddy want to yell at her. 

The heist went fine, business as usual. The twins kept the civilians on the floor while Buddy screamed at the attendant for the money. Nobody got shot that didn't need to, they got the money they showed up to get. Just another day. 

Baby had pulled up to the front door instead of waiting on the other side of the road. 

"Jesus, can't she do anything right?" one of the twins scoffed to the other. She spoke like she was trying to whisper, but her volume was too loud to be ignored. 

"Cops caught on. We gotta go," Baby said. She revved the engine once before shooting off like a rocket. The force of it slammed Buddy against his seat, knocking the wind out of his lungs. That wasn't enough to stop him from letting out a thrilled whoop.

They're grey Sonata weaved between the early-afternoon traffic. A chorus of honks and shouts sounded around them, adding to the intensity of the situation. Out of nowhere, a police car hit T-Boned them on Baby's side and knocked the car off the road. 

As soon as the cars stopped moving, Buddy started shooting. Baby ducked down, giving him a clear shot at the two officers in the squad car. 

"They're dead," Buddy said. 

She got out, keeping her head down as she slid across the hood of the car. Buddy ran after her towards somebody's house with a car parked out front. She slowed to a stop as they got closer, already spinning in place to look for another car. 

"What's the matter? Get in the car!" Viper snapped. 

"No, no, it's too old. It's not gonna go fast enough," Baby said. 

"It's fine! It's in great condition and it's not like we have a ton of options!" Vulture was already in the driver's seat of the car, hunched inside to hotwire it. 

"No, no, it's an Aztek. Brake problems, engine problems, electrical problems. It's not reliable." 

The sound of sirens getting closer made Baby squeeze her eyes shut. She hit her head with the heel of her hand twice, trying to force an idea into her brain. The Aztek roared to life, and the twins had left before Buddy and Baby could even consider getting in.

"We gotta run. They don't know where the switch car is, and the cops'll be more attracted to them than us." Baby squinted as she looked down the road at the tire tracks the twins had left behind. "Besides, if they get there first, they'll leave us behind." 

"Okay, that's fine. Where's the switch car?" 

"Uhh." She spun once more in place. "That way." 

They ran together, backpacks stuffed with stolen cash bouncing against their spines. Baby darted into a road without even noticing the car coming towards her. A slick slide over the hood kept her from getting knocked down and kept her momentum going. Buddy couldn't help but think she got hit by cars a lot. 

He was completely at her mercy as she lead him through the maze of streets and sidewalks. Baby had the entire city memorized, every back road and shortcut was stamped into her brain. Usually she just used that information so she could plan her walk to last just as long as her song. 

By the time they got to the switch car, the weight of Buddy's long black trench coat had him feeling like he was drowning in his own seat. Baby didn't look much better, her face beat red and her hair sticking to her forehead. 

She climbed into the driver's seat, right as the Aztek pulled up beside them. Viper and Vulture throw open the doors, guns at the ready. Buddy took a page out of Baby's book and glided over the hood of the car and got in as quick as he could. A bullet shot off his shoe, barely clipping the heel of his foot in the process. 

Baby pulled out, aimed the car and rammed it into the Aztek, caving in the driver's side door. Viper was trapped in by the car, Baby tried not to think about how her foot stuck out of the bottom of the door. That couldn't possibly be a natural angle. 

The drive back to the warehouse went smoothly, Baby doing her best to follow all the traffic laws. 

"So, Darling thinks you're great," Buddy said once they'd both calmed down. 

"Oh." Her voice sounded indifferent, but Baby's face heated up in a blush. 

"She didn't stop talking about you for a week after that first job. She was a little bummed you didn't call her, honestly."

"Sorry. I don't have a lot of time. And I forgot." Baby thought about adding that in two days, she had convinced herself that Darling was just mocking her. It wouldn't have been the first time she hadn't been in on a joke. It also wouldn't have been the first time she was the unknowing butt of a joke. 

"That's fine, it happens. What keeps you busy?"

"Doc."

"How often do you do jobs?"

"Two a week. On average." 

"Jesus. I can't tell if that means Doc loves you or hates you."

Buddy meant it as a joke, but Baby didn't smile. "I don't know either." 

"So, Queen, huh?" Buddy wasn't sure where he was trying to guide the conversation. But Baby just nodded and killed the potential conversation immediately. Buddy had never been as charming as Darling. 

"Your earbuds are still in," Buddy said. 

"Huh?"

"That's against the law. We're trying to be just average travelers, right?"

"Oh. Right." Baby yanked out her earbuds. "Can I play my music?" 

"Of course." 

Brighton Rock played over the speakers and Buddy grinned. "Nice, I like your vibes. Oh, and smart thinking with the Aztek. I could practically feel the police breathing down their necks. And there was also that great move with trapping Viper in the car." 

Baby tried not to think about the bend of Viper's leg. "I don't really like violence."

"Hate to break it to you, but you're in the wrong line of business." Another bombed joke. Buddy began getting frustrated with himself. Why couldn't he just break through to this kid?

"I'm sorry I didn't call Darling. I should have," she said suddenly. 

"Huh? Don't worry about that. If you're working that often, you can't have a ton of free time. How do you even blow through that much money that quickly?"

 

Baby didn't respond.

"You into those fancy designer drugs or something?"

"No, I don't... I've never done anything like that. Doc just asks me to work a lot."

Buddy looked over at her. "Is Doc blackmailing you?" 

Baby pulled into the parking lot and yanked the aux chord out of her ipod. "Don't talk to Doc about it." 

"I won't, that's your business." 

They walked to the elevator together and found Darling already waiting inside. Her face lit up when she saw them. 

"Well, my Baby and my Buddy!" she crowed, kissing them both on the cheek. Baby wiped the mark off of her face, again. Her forearm was streaked with two red smears of lipstick now. "How was the job?"

"The twins are out, potentially arrested. That's gonna be a problem for Doc. Yours?"

"Well, I didn't fuck mine up. The guy's dead and disposed of." 

"Who was it?" 

Darling glanced at Baby and just shook her head slightly. "I shouldn't talk about it."

To say that Doc was mad the twins were out of the picture was an understatement. His mouth practically frothed as he chewed out Buddy and Baby, his face turning red and a single vein popping out of his forehead. 

"Tell me how this happened, Baby! Why don't you tell me exactly how Viper got stuck in that car!?" he barked. 

Baby took off her sunglasses and lifted her gaze to meet Doc's. "I told them not to take the Aztek. The doors are flimsy anyways. It wouldn't have happened that way if they were in a better car." 

Buddy and Darling shared looks of disbelief. Everybody knew that when Doc yelled a question at someone, he did not want an answer. He wanted an apology. Doc didn't seem fazed by it though.

Instead of getting angrier, he rubbed his temples and sighed. "You told them not to get in the car?"

"Yeah. Police were too close and the Aztek's not a fast enough car. It was ruined after one tap from a black and white." 

"You two go, I've gotta talk with Baby," Doc said. 

Darling started to argue, but Buddy wrapped a hand around her waist and dragged her to the elevator. She practically clawed off his arm trying to fight back. 

"It isn't our fight, Baby's been working with Doc long before we met her. She'll be fine. Besides, Doc wouldn't do anything to hurt his best asset. He can't risk losing her," he said, trying to reason with her. 

"I don't think Baby understands how deep she is in all of this," Darling said. She chewed her bottom lip until it split, tapped her hands against the walls of the elevator. 

"What do you mean?"

"It means that I killed a guy today because he threatened Baby. One of Doc's previous partners, some guy named Eric. I'm worried about her." 

"I'll tell Doc that if Baby needs anything, we'll be there. I doubt he'll need it though. Baby can look after herself," Buddy said.

God, he hoped he was right.


End file.
